January
by Pony Juice
Summary: Ren is still mean to Kyoko and Kyoko is still a catty sixteen year-old trying to prove that she makes a brilliant actress. Somebody is in denial.
1. Janitor

**Disclaimer: I do not own Skip Beat. **

"Ah! FU-" Kyoko quickly remembered that it wasn't Shotaro who was bleaching her brows at that moment, but her Okami. "Forgive me, Okami-san," She smiled meekly at the sharp look Taisho had speared her with when her tongue almost finished pronouncing that unforgivable cry of, "CK!". "I still haven't gotten use to this,"

"Oh no, I'm sorry, Kyoko-chan," Okami-san crumpled her forehead in concern at her tenant's wince. "I should be more careful, but this smell is getting to my head,"

"I'm so sorry for making you smell the bleach," The bleach-haired youngster bit her lip. "I should have just done it myself instead of selfishly asking you to do it for me, Okami-san,"

Meanwhile, Taisho rolled his eyes. _And the guilt-fest begins..._

"Not at all, Kyoko-chan. I'm always happy to help, though it is my fault that I got a little bit of it on your eyelashes,"

"NEVER!" Kyoko gasped, and theatrically clasped her chest, right over her heart. "That was all my fault! I blinked right as you were going in to put it on my eyebrow. I-I shouldn't have blinked! Please, PLEASE forgive me!"

Taisho sighed when he saw her prepare to go into a dogeza. Honestly, girls her age got on their knees that often for less respectful reasons. Kyoko would have to answer to his knife should she ever follow that particular trend.

His wife saw it coming, and with speed that no semi-arthritic, forty-going-on-fifty year-old woman should have, slapped a firm palm on Kyoko's forehead to stop her tear-stricken face from touching the floor.

"You will not ruin your eyebrows, Kyoko-chan," Okami-san ordered, startling the life out the teen.

Taisho cringed and went back to doodling pension money on the living room table with his finger. Kyoko wilted back into her proper, stick-straight, Japanese sitting position.

Later on, Okami-san got her a box of tissues, for which Kyoko thanked her vigorously for. Then Okami-san wheedled her husband into wiping the bleach off of Kyoko's face, much to both Taisho and Kyoko's dismay.

"A pregnant woman with an amputee fetish?" Kyoko croaked. She ripped her eyes off of the paper and stared in disbelief at the cute, curly-haired idol bouncing from her heel to her toes.

"Yes!" She, the idol, gushed. "I thought it would be something a little different than what I usually do,"

"A...a little...?"

"I mean, I'm a singer and everything," She twirled a shiny copper lock of hair and bit her glossy bottom lip. "But I thought that I would give acting a shot. Who knows, I might be talented in both, right?"

The girl's first name started with an N and probably ended with "fucking moron", but Kyoko tamped down the urge to commit some well-deserved homicide.

"But do you think," The idol bit her lip again, and stared right into Kyoko's raging gold eyes. "that they're going to make me get pregnant so I could play this part?"

Fine. Give her a -10 stamp. Kyoko wanted to live a little too.

She leaned in, adopting an equally scandalous tone. "How else did you think you would play a pregnant amputee-fetishist?"

_Fifteen minutes later. _

Kyoko whistled. Or, at least she tried to. Hey, brownie points for effort. So what if she was really blowing air out of her mouth and trying to make it sound like a catchy showtune?

The director came outside, rubbing his temples and patting his pinstriped suit. Kyoko licked her lip; she'd seen that guesture before. The wrinkles on his forehead vanished when a pocket yielded a pack of cigarettes. With practiced ease, he placed the cigarette between his lips and fished out a lighter. He lit up, inhaled, and exhaled loudly.

Then he seemed to notice Kyoko.

"You part of my make-up crew?" He asked in a gravelly voice, which Kyoko decided she liked. He was a good-looking guy; an older man, but still nice to look at. Kyoko's inner woman didn't mind when he gave her a once-over.

"No, I'm part of N-" Damn it, what was her name? "Na...Na - Naru! Yes, I'm part of Naru-chan's team,"

He gave Kyoko a funny look, but did an eyebrow-shrug and inhaled again. He sighed again, rubbing his hair.

"I swear, these fucking idols-" He shook his head.

"I understand,"

"She thinks I want to get her pregnant. I even showed her the body suit and she still hasn't changed her mind," He ran a hand over his face. "Fucking moron,"

"...I understand. Is there anything I can do?" Kyoko innocently looked up at him.

He shot her a withering look. "You can either get her to shut up, or find me a new star,"

"I'm on it," Kyoko bowed and sailor-saluted. She stuffed her hands into her pink, Love Me jumpsuit and ran off in the direction of the LME building.

The location of the Love Me job was roughly four blocks away from her workplace, so Kyoko booked it on foot. She craftily avoided pedestrians and those dastardly cracks in the sidewalk. _Step on a crack, break your mother's back. _

Kyoko wasn't all that winded by the time she ran through the sliding doors of LME. Maybe it was because of the second hand smoke from the director, or it might have been from killing the need to laugh at how gullible that Naru-chan was.

But Kyoko slammed right into Tsuruga Ren.

Her nose felt like it was going to combust. Seriously, _what _was that man made of? He was like that robot from that American movie she and Shotaro loved so much. The Terminator. Yeah, Tsuruga Ren was built like _that. _

"It's you," He looked like he would rather peel his toe nails off and eat them than share the same oxygen as Kyoko. While she was mildly offended by this, she tried not to show it.

Kyoko smiled stiffly in turn and forced herself to bow politely. Mother of Pearl, his feet were huge! What was it that Shotaro always said?

"Good afternoon, Tsuruga-san,"

His frown only deepened. "Once again, you are presenting LME poorly,"

Kyoko arched a cheddar-orange brow, going from mildly offended to full-blown butt-hurt. "What do you mean by that?"

Dark eyes coldly studied her, making Kyoko follow suit and look at herself. Well, gosh, it wasn't like anybody short of His Majesty would be able to keep a baggy pink pair of overalls neat after running like Satan was snapping at her heels.

They both brought their stares back up at the same time. She held her eye contact even though looking into Tsuruga Ren's eyes was something of a feat; a Herculean effort, more like. They were steely gray sometimes, though maybe they were more taupe? Either way, eye contact with him sent chills down her back and goosebumps all over her skin. Though Kyoko would gouge her own eyes out before admitting that they were pleasant tingles.

"I mean," Tsuruga motioned at her hair and down to her rumpled clothing. "You look like a mess,"

The tiny ponytail she had tied had become loose, spitting out orange strands in a disarray. She had thickly coated mascara on her lashes, since Okami-san had bleached a couple lashes orange. Now that mascara was smearing under her eyes. She was pretty sweaty, too, and from how hot her cheeks felt, red.

"I am making a statement, Tsuruga-san," Kyoko challenged defensively.

The things that shot out of her mouth shocked her sometimes. She would go with this, though. No way was she going to let this man get away with insulting her again.

Kyoko made a grandiose presentation of herself and stuck her chin up boldly. Tsuruga Ren's eyes darkened slightly, making Kyoko grin a little. "How is it a bad thing that LME employees are taking care of their bodies by exercising? In fact, Tsuruga-san, I just ran a lap around the block without getting out of breath,"

"Oh?" He cocked a brow, eyes narrowing. Tsuruga Ren crossed his arms, gray suit jacket tightening over his wonderfully muscled arms.

"In fact," Kyoko continued. "I think it reflects negatively on LME when our employees aren't willing to break a sweat or get their hands a little dirty,"

Tsuruga Ren's lips thinned. "I won't argue with that," And just like that, he began to smile brilliantly. Kyoko froze instantly. She was beginning to understand him and his mood swings, and that he tended to act like a girl, like when he acted like he was fine when he was actually lethally pissed. "But Mogami-san, have you apologized to me yet for bumping into me?"

She momentarily lost her cool, gold eyes widening. "Me? Bumping into you? Tsuruga-san," Kyoko breathed, hand on heart once more. "You knew I was a little tired from my run and yet you were the one being careless enough to not see m-"

"I believe it was you who said that you ran around the block without getting out of breath," He smirked. Tsuruga Ren brought his face down to Kyoko's, effectively petrifying her. "Unless, you were lying to me?"

"I cannot tell a lie," Kyoko replied quickly.

"Then why are you pursuing an acting career?" She could smell his cologne from his closeness, and it was beginning to fog up her brain.

And just as quickly as he'd been in her face, he was out of it.

Tsuruga Ren looked down at her (figuratively _and_ physically, the bastard) expectantly.

Kyoko bit the inside of her cheek in order to stop herself from telling him to go eat a dick. Like she would bow to this man, even if he _was _the number one actor in Japan.

She forced a smile and folded herself into a bow. Through gritted teeth, she said, "I apologize for running into you, Tsuruga-san. Having a sixteen year-old girl bump into you must be painful, ne?"

Kyoko smiled sweetly and rejoiced at the tiny flicker of annoyance in his eyes. "If there is nothing else, I have a job to do,"

Before he could respond, Kyoko skeddadled out of there, gleeful at her triumph. She had just one-upped Tsuruga Ren, and it was _nice. _


	2. Crook

**Disclaimer: I do not own Skip Beat. **

Young, good-looking, and new. Young, good-looking, and new. Young, good-looking, and new. Young, good-looking and-

Holy shit! A princess!

Kyoko pumped her fist in delight.

"Excuse me?" Kyoko addressed the fair-skinned young girl fixing her hair in the restroom.

Through the mirror, Kyoko scrunched her face up in thought. This girl looked kind of familiar.

"You are Matsunai Ruriko-chan!"

Matsunai Ruriko, who had been ignoring the incessant, loving stares Kyoko had been pinning her with, smirked at the orange-haired teenager and puffed her chest.

"I am Matsunai Ruriko-chan," Ruriko agreed haughtily and tossed her hair back with a hand on her hip. "Japan's last superstar idol,"

Kyoko's excitement faltered. 'Last superstar idol?' _It feels like she's some kind of endangered species. _She shook her head. _That's the wrong way of thinking. _

Ruriko paused. She turned to fully look at Kyoko. She gave the other girl a once-over, eyes glued to the Love Me logo on Kyoko's chest.

"So," Ruriko sneered. "You're the famed Love Me member,"

"U-Um, yes," Kyoko stammered. She did not like the way Ruriko was coldly evaluating her with icy blue eyes. "I wanted to ask if Ruriko-chan would be willing to take part in the upcoming film, 'Ring Doh'. See, the lead recently quit, so Director Shingai asked me to recruit a new lead,"

Kyoko clasped her hands together in prayer. "Please, Ruriko-chan. Consider your choice,"

"Oh, I get it," Ruriko sniffed. "You're one of those people-pleasing pets who wait on _real _actors' beck and call shamelessly for a debut. You work on favors, right? You want people to _love you_?" Kyoko's face hardened when Ruriko mockingly poked the Love Me logo. "You obviously have no real talent, yet you refuse to let go of your hold on the Affairs Department. I hate this type of despicable people the most,"

Kyoko's demons were roaring. The outraged doppelgängers made a murderous beeline for the mouthy bitch who dared to insult their mistress. People-pleasing pet? _Love_? No talent?

_"We will show her 'no-talent people-pleaser'! Let me at 'er!" They hissed, tiny fists outstretched with ill-intent. _

_The few surviving Kyoko Angels trapped the Demons. "No! Don't let her get the best of you, Kyoko-sama~!" _

Her face hurt from the effort it took to pull the corners of her lips up, but Kyoko did it. She smiled asked, "Is that a yes? If so, please follow me,"

Ruriko recoiled at the bright smile on her face. She had whiplash from the lethal look on the girl's face only seconds ago changing into this...was that...glitter? Where were all those bubbles coming from!

A tulip blossomed cutely from Kyoko's head as she more or less shoved Ruriko out of the bathroom.

"H-Hey!"

"Pardon me, Ruriko-chan," Kyoko said gently, though her face was dark and quickly becoming Satanic.

"I'm only doing this because I want you to know that this will benefit me more than it will ever benefit you," Ruriko snarled.

Kyoko towed her towards the front door when Ruriko suddenly screamed. "I am not going outside in the _sun_!"

"What? Why not? Sunlight is an excellent source of vitamin D, which keeps your bones healthy, Matsunai-san!" Kyoko pointed eagerly at the sun-soaked sidewalk of Tokyo.

Ruriko narrowed her eyes at the comment and huffed. She avoided Kyoko's golden stare when she said, "I have an allergy to the sun. I never had any strenuous exercise as a child and never went outside very much because of it,"

Kyoko's heart thawed at that. Ruriko-chan was just like a princess! Her skin was fair like Snow White's, and she was frail and beautiful. She suffered with her illness quietly, like a true noble lady. Kyoko began to tear up, her previous animosity chipping away.

Sure Ruriko flat-out told Kyoko, a person she didn't know at all, that she hated her, but...she was a princess.

And in Kyoko's book, that forgave (almost) everything.

"If I don't get an umbrella, sunglasses, and sunblock in two minutes, then you can forget about having me do this job," Ruriko crossed her arms impatiently.

"Oh, I have all those things in my locker," Kyoko said.

Ruriko began to frown, but the Love Me member snatched her wrist and ushered her into the locker room.

Kyoko shoved a tube of sunblock, a thick pair of shades, and an umbrella with a ducks on it to Ruriko, who reflexively caught the items, which collectively, were little fuck-you's to the sun. Ruriko even found a black fishing hat that, when angled properly, shaded most of her face.

"Fine. We can go now," Ruriko relented.

The two girls walked out the doors of LME. Ruriko opened the umbrella and threw it at Kyoko. "Hold this out for me,"

"Yes," Kyoko mumbled. 

_ "She's telling her what to do! That bitch is telling Kyoko-sama what to do! What the hell? WHAT THE HELL?" The demons surfaced, aiming for Ruriko's jugular. _

_ "Please, keep yourself professional!" Angel Kyoko cried. _

Oblivious to a potentially gruesome death at the hand of Kyoko-apparitions and Kyoko's inner turmoil ("To kill or not to kill? Hm..."), the idol darted her eyes around the street. "Where's the car?"

"Car?" Kyoko blinked in surprise. "No, we're walking. It's only four blocks,"

"'It's only four blocks,'" Ruriko mocked. "Are you stupid or something? I said that I can't do any strenuous exercise. Do you have any idea how long four blocks are? No way! I am not going to walk that far unless you plan on carrying me,"

"But-"

"Just thinking about all that walking is making me thirsty. Buy me something to drink," Ruriko started walking towards the convenience store around the block. Kyoko sped-up to keep the umbrella over her head.

Ruriko picked out a tiny bottle of water and demanded Kyoko pay for it. The baby-sized drink was ridiculously expensive. _Is this Holy Water or something? _

Meanwhile, the blue-eyed demon eyed a row of candy bars. Kyoko was holding a tote bag at one side and a fanny pack around her hips that was level with the counter. Ruriko picked up a bar of chocolate and turned it around, casually reading the nutritional value. Her stare fell onto the fanny pack devilishly.

Her fingers unzipped the pack. Ruriko's eyes never left Kyoko's face. The girl didn't seem to feel her bag being opened, so Ruriko continued. Once the fanny pack was opened wide enough for the candy bar to slip through, she quietly put it in. With ease, she zipped it back up.

A dark smile bloomed on Matsunai Ruriko's face.


	3. Medic

**Disclaimer: I do not own Skip Beat. **

"Here," Kyoko dropped the bottle into Ruriko's arms.

_ Man, with how much that midget water cost, I won't be able to buy any lunch, _Kyoko gloomily closed her wallet and stuck it back into her purse. When she looked up at Ruriko, the girl was beaming.

"Let's go," She chirped, blue eyes glowing.

Dumbfounded, Kyoko nodded. _What a moody person. _

The two girls walked through the doors of the convenience store. Suddenly, a deafening beeping shrieked as Kyoko passed through. All eyes were abruptly on her.

"Excuse me, miss," The store clerk stepped up from behind her.

"Is there something wrong?" Kyoko's heart thudded in her chest. She felt her pulse drumming loudly in her ears. Was she in trouble? She hadn't stolen anything so why was she getting dirty looks from fellow shoppers?

To her horror, a policeman chose that moment to step into the store. His ears pricked at the beeping and he lifted a brow at Kyoko, who was frozen under the disapproving glares of the store clerk. Ruriko was standing by with her arms across her chest, lips quirked in a small smile.

"Is there a problem, sir?" The policeman asked.

The store clerk frowned and shifted his arms. "It seems like this girl was shoplifting,"

Kyoko gaped. Her blood was rushing, and her heart was in her throat. Her? Shoplifting?

"B-But I paid for this holy water, even though it was unfairly priced for only four ounces of product,"

Ruriko's smile grew.

Both men scowled. "Miss, please come this way," The policeman clamped a heavy hand down on her shoulder, making Kyoko's spine straighten further in horror.

"Honestly, sir, I-I didn't steal anything! I would never do something so shameful_._ There must be some sort of misunderstanding - please, listen to me!" She cried while the policeman issued a body search. He patted down her pink overalls, dumped out the contents of her bag, and finally, to add the Cherry of Humiliation to the Ice Cream Sundae of Shame, he removed her fanny pack.

And there, in her fanny pack, was a chocolate bar.

A chocolate bar Kyoko never paid for.

She bit her bottom lip to stop the loud sob building itself up in her throat. No, no, no! This was not happening. That candy bar - that _fucking_ candy bar - she never stole it! How did it end up in her fanny pack? It didn't have little chocolate hands and feet to unzip her pack and climb in, did it?

Kyoko could see it now.

_Breaking news! LME Employee shoplifts candy from local convenience store. (read all about it on page 6!) _

No. No, she couldn't allow something so atrocious to headline the papers the next morning. She would not bring shame to her agency. She couldn't.

Her eyes stung at the mental image of the President's disappointed face, and the disgusted face of the second most beautiful man she'd ever seen.

* * *

><p>Ruriko watched the police officer push Kyoko's protesting head into the police car with a grin.<p>

Good. Now the talentless hussy was destroyed. It wasn't like anybody would help a thief enter show-biz.

Besides, it wasn't like Ruriko was actually going to _help _that girl. She didn't have time to be a replacement in some stupid, low-budget film for the Love Me freak.

"Ah, I just have enough time to get to the location of my shoot," Ruriko cheerfully tapped her watch. She walked out of the convenience store with her cellphone pressed against her ear and called her bespectacled manager.

"Hello, Ruriko-chan. I was just about to remind you about filming, actually. I'll bring the car by in five minutes, okay?"

"Whatever," Ruriko said impatiently. She chewed her bottom lip as she asked, "Tsuruga Ren...he's in the movie, isn't he?"

"'Ring Doh'? Yes, he is," Her manager chuckled.

"'Ring Doh'?" Ruriko furrowed her brows. Why did that name sound so familiar?

"You forgot the name of the film that you're acting in?"

"I didn't forget," She snapped defensively. "I-I just blanked out a little,"

"Of course. My apologies,"

"Can you tell me the director's name?"

"Eh? The director? Let's see - his name is-"

_Beep-beep-beep! _

"What?" Ruriko screeched, startling passer-bys on the street. She glared at the screen, which blinked with, "Low Battery. Powering off."

Growling, Ruriko smashed her cellphone on the sidewalk and stomped off to LME.

* * *

><p>He didn't handcuff her.<p>

Kyoko imagined her sniffling and her pitiful fetal position in the backseat of the squad car made him pity her a little.

Her humiliation was enough punishment.

_How could I get arrested on the job? Director Shingai needed a replacement and I failed him. I failed the President. My career as an actress is over. _Kyoko's face fell. Her stomach clenched in despair. How did this happen to her? _Why_ did these things happen to her? She squeezed her eyes shut. Orange brows tugged together in distress. Her cheeks were wet and her jaw ached from keeping her mouth shut to stop herself from bawling like a baby.

Disappointment. Kyoko was a disappointing daughter and a disappointing actress. She hadn't even begun her acting career and it was already over.

_No, _Kyoko forced herself out of her self-pity. _Something like this can't stop me from getting my revenge on Shotaro. I can't give up now. No way, not me! I did not come all this way just to lose my chance at destroying Shotaro and Tsuruga Ren to a bar of chocolate. _

Fiery gold eyes hardened. She summoned her special brand of Mogami Kyoko-determination with two fists tightening in her lap. There was not going to be a dirty smudge on her record. She was no criminal and she knew it. She was a hundred percent sure she wasn't subconsciously smuggling candy into her fanny pack. In fact, Kyoko didn't indulge in junk food anyway. She didn't want cavities on the smile that would soon become the trademark of every billboard in Japan and then some.

Mogami Kyoko was going to protect herself as an aspiring actress.

First, she clapped her hands together in prayer and sought forgiveness to every religious figure she knew.

_Forgive me Buddha, Hades, Jesus, Joseph, Amaterasu-omikami~. _

Then Kyoko opened the car door and rolled the fuck out.

In the distance, she heard the police officer shouting. She heard tires squealing, drivers screaming, and the sound of her overalls shredding on the asphalt.

Kyoko felt a wicked case of vertigo when she felt her body hurtling downwards. Blades of grass slashed at her cheeks and she felt the dull ache of forming bruises and the stinging of cuts and scrapes. Her mind was spinning, like her brain was in a blender. She clenched her eyes and mouth shut, and formed a protective X over her face with her arms.

Kyoko screamed.

Her foot snagged on something, and she emptied her lungs in agony when she felt her leg jerk harshly. It felt like her leg was going to be ripped out of its socket.

At last, Kyoko's hellish descent ended.

Kyoko's face smashed into a grassy field. When she lifted herself up with her upper body, she almost blacked out at the Godzilla-sized pain ripping through her body.

It felt like somebody was drilling into her ankle. Actually, that would have felt soothing at that moment. Truly, it felt like a crew of construction workers sawing her foot off at the ankle, slicing through nerves, snapping bones, and forcing her to experience physical pain that was only measurable to her emotional pain. Kyoko bit down harshly on her bottom lip so she wouldn't scream again.

"Oh...Oh _God…zilla_," She gasped. "Th-This...this is what they call divine punishment,"

Her face slammed back into the grass.

* * *

><p>When Kyoko came to, one thought rose above all others.<p>

It hurt _everywhere. _

She felt dazed at first. Black dots spotted her vision at the slightest turn of her head. A dizzy spell had her brain and her tummy churning. Her bottom lip was bleeding from how hard she had been biting. Her entire body was scratched and torn up from her tumble down from the highway to the steep hill. Rocks, litter, and discarded car parts branded her skin with burning cuts and bruises.

Her vanity applauded her on not damaging her face. Her hair was beyond saving, and she would need a new uniform.

Fear tore through her veins when she remembered that the police officer could come down and look for her. Not only would she have (wrongly accused) shoplifting on her record, but now she would be in trouble for fleeing. Mogami Kyoko - fugitive at large.

Shotaro would have a field day with that.

Kyoko experimentally lifted her injured foot and paid dearly for it with more Godzilla-pain.

Kyoko grimly realized she had escaped one mess to enter another.

She rested her forehead on the ground and sighed softly. Her ears prickled when she heard rustling nearby. Her eyes snapped open in alarm. What if it was a bear? Or...or…_two _bears? Or a Mama bear, a Papa bear, and a Baby bear? A hungry family of bears who liked the taste of human girl?

Kyoko began to frantically wiggle, but stopped when the rustling turned into footsteps.

She froze.

Kyoko lifted her stare up to a pair of huge, leather-shoed feet, mile-long legs, lean and muscled arms leading into big hands stuffed in the pockets of a pair of white jeans, and the calm, cool face of Tsuruga Ren.

She wiggled feverishly. _Of all of the people to find me! I'd rather have Papa bear! Damn, damn, damn-_

Kyoko's mouth went dry when his smoldering eyes ran over her body. Their eyes met, effectively stunning her. Tsuruga took in the tattered, dirty overalls, and the various injuries on her body. Finally, his gaze settled on her ankle.

"Tsuruga-san,"

His dark eyes snapped back to her face.

To anybody other than Kyoko, Ren looked like he was nonchalantly observing a sculpture or a painting. However, she had caught the stunned, slight widening of his eyes when he saw her lying there like a decomposing corpse. And maybe that crinkle between his brows was worry.

"Let me take a look at that,"

Kyoko's widened her eyes when Tsuruga Ren squatted by her feet. He grabbed her foot, and twisted her body around in the most viciously painful position. Kyoko gritted her teeth and beat the ground with her fist. _It hurts, it hurts, it hurts, it huuuuuurts! _

"Aw, shit," Another male voice said from over Tsuruga's shoulder. "I thought she was a dead animal or something,"

A third man muttered in awe, "She looks like she's in a world of pain,"

_A galaxy of pain. A universe of pain. Ow. Oww. _

With surprising gentleness, the handsome actor lightly ran his cool fingertips over her ankle. She hoped he wouldn't feel the goosebumps blossoming across her skin at his soothing touch. Tsuruga sagely delivered the verdict, with his long fingers still curled around her ankle. "I think she fractured her bone,"

She stopped beating the grass senseless and whipped her head up. _It can't be! _

"Did you get in a fight or something?" He cocked a brow at her.

"You should've seen the other guy," She grunted. Kyoko hissed when he set her foot back down.

A tiny smile quirked a corner of his mouth but it vanished as quickly as it came.

"Well, we can't do anything by staying here," Tsuruga Ren patted his knees.

Kyoko narrowed her eyes at him. "What do you mean by tha-AH! Tsuruga-san!"

He ignored her cry and lifted her up with his hands under her thighs and back.

_Like a princess, _Kyoko thought miserably. She might have enjoyed it if she didn't feel like blacking out every time her head moved.

"I mean," Tsuruga said, dare she say it, playfully? His hot breath brushed against her ear, sending chills throughout her body. "You look like a mess,"

She grimaced at the reminder of their earlier conversation.

"It's not my fault you have bad timing," Kyoko huffed. "What are you doing here anyway?"

His face was decidedly detached. "I am filming a movie here,"

Kyoko rolled her eyes. "Of course you are," She muttered. "I am fine, so please put me down!"

"Fine?" Tsuruga scoffed in disbelief, eyes darkening at her. "You look like you picked a fight with a shark,"

"That is none of your concern, Tsuruga-san. I could be run over, shot at, and mauled by lions and it still wouldn't be of your concern," Kyoko squirmed in his warm, hard arms. "I don't need your false sympathy, so please leave me alone!"

"False sympathy?" His fingers tightened around her thighs, making her flinch at a bruise forming there.

"Y-Yes, 'false sympathy'. You lead people into believing you are helping them, and then you betray them," Kyoko accused, cheeks red in embarrassment and anger.

"And you are pursuing an acting career for the wrong reasons. Show business is not a game," He smiled, though his eyes were cut hard enough to cut diamonds. "I do not appreciate such disrespect towards this profession, or any profession for that matter,"

"As I said before," Kyoko wheezed when his hold became crushing. She could practically smell what brand of detergent he was using at how he was smushing her against his hard chest. "That is not of your concern. What I do or don't do is not your business,"

"It becomes my business when you offend something I value," His steely eyes blazed in unbridled annoyance. "Acting is my life,"

Kyoko glared right back. "Tsuruga-san has his reasons to be an actor and I have mine,"

He narrowed his eyes. Fear coursed through her veins, along with adrenaline. His aura was darkening, suffocating and chilling. Kyoko's golden glare persisted, her own demonic aura clashing with his. Her pulse hummed in her neck. The little Grudge antenna gushed over both its Master's and Tsuruga Ren's fury.

"You abused my good intentions," He murmured thoughtfully, suddenly changing the subject. In a moment that Kyoko could have missed, his stare flickered to her lips. Granted they were bloody, but she could've sworn she saw a little more than hatred in his eyes. "Instead of thanking me, you threw a temper tantrum,"

"I don't remember asking for your help!" She shoved at his chest, which only made her face feel hotter. How was he so nicely built? "For you to kindly help me, these must be some ulterior motive, for sure!"

"I am not one to bully an injured woman. I am also made of flesh and blood," _And titanium metal, you cyborg prick! _

Passer-bys watched in awe as Tsuruga Ren carried a battered and heavily wounded young girl in dirty pink overalls. She was shouting at him, her body language stiff and uncomfortable.

"Amazing," A member of the crew remarked. "That cool guy Ren can actually be disliked by a girl,"

"Truly unexpected," Another mumbled in shock.

"I just don't want to owe you any favors!"

"Since you put it that way," Tsuruga set her down on a bench. "I'll drop you off here,"

Tsuruga Ren walked away, without sparing another look her way.

Kyoko awkwardly shifted herself on the bench. She watched him walk towards a man in glasses. She studied his body language critically.

_He isn't mad, is he? Ooh, damn you, Tsuruga Ren. Now I feel bad. I should apologize for fidgeting so much and shouting at him...he did find me and help me after I was so badly injured. _

"Hello," The bespectacled man Tsuruga Ren was talking to walked over to Kyoko with a kind smile. "You can call me Yashiro. I'm Ren's manager,"

"Yashiro-san," Kyoko looked up at him in wonder. He pulled out a First Aid kit and a roll of bandages and set them on the bench besides her.

"You are Kyoko-chan, right?"

"Uh, yes. Mogami Kyoko," She bowed as best as she could while sitting. Yashiro-san smiled at her effort.

"Ah, Ren told me you fell down a hill. How did you manage that?"

_I was escaping a moving vehicle. _

"I, uh, tripped,"

"Down a hill from a highway?"

She nodded quickly.

"Okay, okay," He pulled on a pair of gloves. Yashiro-san rolled up her pants so that he could bandage her ankle. "I won't ask any further if you don't want me to,"

"Thank you," She sighed gratefully.

He quickly and carefully secured the bandage around her ankle. It was beginning to swell horribly, so Kyoko was glad that the white bandages obscured her view.

"Kyoko-chan, I'm going to have to take you to the hospital,"

"Hospital?" Kyoko asked, baffled. "But you already bandaged it,"

"Yes, but this is temporary. You need to get this checked and you need your cuts cleaned. You don't want any infections. And from how unfocused your eyes are, you might have had a mild concussion,"

"I have to return to my job," Kyoko lifted herself up with the help of the crutches Yashiro-san had gotten her.

"And where is your job?"

"The set of 'Ring Doh' in-"

Yashiro-san gave her an odd look. "But Kyoko-chan, you_ are_ on the set of 'Ring Doh'."

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, the police officer scratched his head as he looked over at the grassy clearing that odd girl had fallen into. He hoped a bear hadn't eaten her or something.<p>

It wasn't like he was planning to jail her, anyway. He shook his head and got back into his car. He was just going to let her off with a warning.

* * *

><p><strong>I'm having Kyoko refer to Ren as "Tsuruga", just because (correct me if I'm wrong) calling someone (mentally) by their last name in Japanese culture is a sign of disrespect. <strong>

**Happy reading :) **


	4. Assassin

**Disclaimer: I do not own Skip Beat. **

"Wait," Kyoko choked, amber eyes wide. "A-Are you meaning to tell me that Tsuruga-san is acting in _Ring Doh_?"

Yashiro blinked. "Yes,"

_Why! Why does that man have to be on the same set I'm working on? WHY? _

"Anyway, Kyoko-chan," Yashiro-san pushed his glasses up. "We have to get you to the hospital. I'll bring my car around, okay?"

"NO!"

The older man recoiled, stunned by the ferocity coming from the incapacitated sixteen-year old.

"Thank you for your concern, but I must continue doing my job. I can manage on crutches for now," Kyoko swished her head to and fro before looking at Yashiro-san again. "Do you know where Director Shingai is?"

"I saw him speaking with Naru-chan, but you still need to get checked out,"

Kyoko shook her head. "Forgive me, Yashiro-san, but I can't go now,"

He watched the orange-headed teen hobble away on her crutches, tiny flickers of pain flashing on her face. "At least get those cuts disinfected!" Yashiro cried, waving the First Aid kit wildly like he was signaling for help on a deserted island.

Kyoko found Director Shingai and Naru-chan in an alleyway. The film trailers were parked on the sidewalks of the enclosed set. The scene being filmed today was the scene where Naru-chan's character, Funakoshi Fuko, meets Tsuruga Ren's character, Ito Tommy. From what the stage hands had told her, Tsuruga-san was playing a half-Scottish cop investigating a murder at the Funakoshi estate.

"Remember, Naru-chan," Director Shingai was saying with a wag of his finger. "You are interested in Tommy because...?"

"Because Tommy-kun lost his right arm during a shoot-out!" She answered brightly. "The wound got infected because he was forced to stay in hiding for four days without any medical attention and got gangrene. Then he had to get his arm chopped off," She popped the "p" cutely.

"Perfect," Shingai Seiji's brow relaxed. He patted the top of her head like a proud pet owner.

"Shingai-san?"

They turned to Kyoko. Both celebrity and director took a double take at the crutches, the lagging gold eyes, and the uniform that would never be the same again.

"K-Kyoko-chan!" Naru-chan cried, eyes frantically looking at the various injuries dealt to the poor girl. "What happened?"

"I take it your replacement mission didn't go too well," Shingai Seiji cringed. "I feel terrible about this,"

"No, no," She sighed. "This was my fault. I was -,"

"I feel bad about getting you so badly injured," He interrupted reassuringly. "But I feel bad because..." He ventured a discreet glance at Naru-chan, who was following a wire leading to a trailer two blocks away. "Because I wasn't going to actually replace Naru-chan,"

Stare.

"I was just planning to get her competitive enough to commit to her role,"

Stare.

"But once we got her in that pregnant suit, she understood,"

Stare.

"The real diva on set is Matsunai Ruriko. President Takarada asked that I get Ruriko-chan to become passionate about entertaining again,"

Star- wait... "Matsunai Ruriko?"

Director Shingai lowered his hand from awkwardly scratching the back of his head. "Yes, Matsunai Ruriko. She's playing Fuko's half-sister Choko,"

"Matsunai Ruriko," Kyoko began slowly. "is acting in _Ring Doh_?"

Director Shingai tilted his head, one eye scrunched up. "Yes. Matsunai Ruriko is acting in _Ring Doh_. She arrived on set not too long ago, actually."

A million thoughts flew through her mind. Matsunai Ruriko - _the _Ruriko-chan who Kyoko had been recruiting to replace Naru-chan in _Ring Doh_ up until the alleged robbery - already had a role in _Ring Doh_? Then why had she accepted Kyoko's offer?

Slowly, things began to fall into place.

_ "You're one of those people-pleasing pets who wait on real actors' beck and call shamelessly for a debut." _

Ruriko had accepted only after she realized Kyoko was the fabled Love Me member, hadn't she?

_"I hate this type of despicable people the most!" _

Kyoko was so used to girls hating her (mainly due to pettiness over that stupid Shoutaro), that she must've overlooked and brushed off Ruriko's hatred. If Ruriko already had a role in _Ring Doh_, she obviously wouldn't have been interested in playing a replacement character in the same movie.

_She still said yes. Ruriko hated me and she was already set to play Choko. _Cold realization struck Kyoko hard. _She already had somewhere to go when I approached her. Ruriko never planned on going with me anywhere. So why did she..._

Rage rushed through her veins, like fire lighting up gasoline. Her stomach churned acid as her fists clenched tightly.

_She was getting rid of me. The shoplifting incident..._Fiery gold eyes snapped open. Ruriko had been standing next to her, hadn't she? The candy was at the front of the counter, wasn't it? Ruriko had been so mysteriously cheerful right before Kyoko got in trouble, hadn't she? Kyoko's fanny pack was facing Ruriko, wasn't it? _She...that...Ruriko framed me! She got me arrested! She's the reason why the bone in my foot is fractured! I have a mild fucking concussion because of that...female dog! _

Kyoko screwed her mouth up, teeth gritted and fists bunched at her side stiffly. Grudges shot out from the violent black aura surrounding the trembling girl like the devil's breath. _That lying, scheming, no-good, piece of- _

Meanwhile, Naru-chan looked on curiously at Kyoko (after getting bored of playing reverse-Hansel and Gretel with a wire), who was stewing in a heavily-steeped dark aura surrounded by little Kyoko apparitions that were muttering, holding candles, and making suspicious hand gestures.

Director Shingai looked disturbed on various levels, and backed away before breaking out in a full sprint, away from the scary look on that deranged girl's face.

"Wait just a second, Director Shingai," A deep, demonic voice commanded. Shingai Seiji felt weighed down by what felt like an invisible elephant on his shoulders. When cold fingers he couldn't see forced his head to face the smirking Kyoko, Shingai forced down a yelp.

"You said something about Matsunai Ruriko causing trouble on set?"

"N-N-Not trouble, necessarily," He whimpered with sweat fleeing his pores. "W-Well, she tends to run off and not take her job seriously,"

"Oh?" Kyoko smiled a mental little smile. "I have a proposition,"

"Pro-Proposition?"

"Yes," She purred. "You wanted to find a fake replacement to incite Naru-chan, didn't you? Why not force Ruriko-chan to fight for her role?"

"But you didn't bring a replacement!" Shingai cried.

Kyoko leaned casually against her crutch. She lifted a hand, immediately mortifying the director.

She curled all fingers back except for her pointer finger and pointed to her nose in what could have been in an adorable way if Kyoko didn't look like she was about to be measured for a strait jacket.

"Who said I didn't bring a replacement?"

_ Meanwhile…_

Furious.

Matsunai Ruriko was _furious,_ if the cartoonish steam and her grinding pearly whites didn't give her away. Her pale fists bunched tightly in her pink kimono, turning her knuckles bone white. She was trembling so hard her wig began to shake atop her head.

_Hyena! That _hyena_! Where did she come from? She was **arrested**! How did she get onto the set? And in Tsuruga Ren's arms, no less! How did that happen! She should have been in jail, or if she was lucky, on the set of that stupid movie she wanted me to be in. _

Ruriko scrunched her brows together. _So what is the hyena doing on the set? _

Just then, the magnificent sight of a tall, red-haired hunk caught her eye. Ruriko's face grew warm as she watched Tsuruga Ren extend his wrist to a wardrobe assistant who needed to fix the cuff of Tsuruga-san's white button-down. He wore emerald contacts beautifully between long lashes that ornamented elegantly slanted eyes and artfully swept spindly shadows across his straight nose. Full lips smiled as Tsuruga-san idly chatted with stagehands. He definitely looked like a half-Scottish, half-Japanese detective - and a gorgeous one at that.

His distance, however, was putting on a damper on things. _He _was the one who so fervently requested to costar with her, so why was he ignoring her now? And why did he touch that filthy brown-noser? Ugh!

With her chest feeling tight, Ruriko felt her feet move towards Tsuruga-san's magnetic pull. He only looked down when she tugged on his sleeve. It was the first time he acknowledged her the entire time they were on set, and the full force of his face near hers overwhelmed Ruriko.

"Um," She began shyly, but froze under the weight of a patented Tsuruga Ren smile.

"Ah," More of his knee-gelatinizing smile. "It's Ruriko-chan,"

Almost involuntarily, her mouth smiled in response to his.

"You're finally here," Smile.

"Er..." Ruriko chuckled nervously, while brightly blushing.

"I'm getting impatient waiting for you,"

STAB! Ruriko choked at the cutting coldness of his tone and almost fell over at his harshness. _Wha...wha…? _

He delivered his words sharply and with no hesitation, that smile firmly on his face. Though now that she looked at it, Ruriko no longer felt any warmth from it. Her face grew dark, and with a pivot of her heel, she stomped away. _What was that! I don't want to hear those words from you! _

* * *

><p>Kyoko shrugged out of her Love Me jumpsuit (NEVER FORGET). Since it was so warm lately, she was decked out in a white undershirt and pale yellow shorts underneath her jumpsuit. She carefully lowered the pant cuff over her wounded ankle, and sighed loudly in relief when she was free of the uniform that was just as badly crippled as she was.<p>

She was sitting on the same bench Tsuruga Ren had dropped her off on earlier. Kyoko peeled open an alcohol wipe from the first aid kit Yashiro-san had left for her. Director Shingai had readily agreed to let Kyoko incite Ruriko, so long as she cleaned herself up before the make-up and costume team got to work on her.

"…must be swift as coursing river (be a man!)" Swab, swab. Ow. "With all the force of a great typhooooooon~" That scab was shaped like China. Or maybe Texas? No, no. Definitely China. "...with all the strength of a raging fire…mysterious as the dark side of the mooooooooooooon!"

Kyoko was dabbing at a cut on her thigh shaped like President Takarada's eyebrow when thumping footfalls on the sidewalk forced her to look up. Immediately, her cheerful singing came to a halt and her Grudges roared to life.

Ruriko-chan looked equally Satanic when she saw the Love Me hyena sitting on a bench by the trailer. A smirk slowly worked its way onto her face when she saw the condition Kyoko was in.

"Did you fight the police off or something?" Ruriko gave her a patronizing once-over. "And here I thought you couldn't get uglier,"

A Grudge fired up and out of Kyoko's shoulder, along with a menacingly black aura. The Grudge snapped its fingers with a sardonic grin. "_In the end, she looks better on the outside than on the inside._"

Kyoko's body language screamed murder; she was hunched with her hair cast over her eyes darkly. The black aura was polluted with Grudges who were mumbling and plotting and glaring lethally over their little blue shoulders at Ruriko.

_ HER! GAH! DAMN YOU STRAIGHT TO SATAN'S LAP! _

Ruriko reeled back at the sharp force of hatred oozing off of Kyoko. If she didn't know better, it felt like some presence was pulling on her hair. Ruriko winced and reached for her hair to soothe the source of pain.

If Ruriko had been looking at Kyoko, she would have seen the sinister smirk curling the teen's lip up.

"Why are you here?" Ruriko stopped fidgeting with her hair when she couldn't discover what was tugging her hair so fiercely. "I thought you had that stupid movie of yours to film,"

_So she _was _setting me up. _

Kyoko clenched her fists and silently gave the heads-up for more Grudges to pull at Ruriko's stupid hair.

If Kyoko had learned anything from dealing with dicks like Shotaro and his harem of jealous admirers, it was that they loved getting her riled up. She discovered a tactic that succeeded in getting them to get off her case and succeeded in pissing them off.

"Don't you remember?" Kyoko smiled saccharinely. "The film I wanted you to help me with was _Ring Doh_. You know, memory loss at such a young age may be a sign of early Alzheimer's. You should take Vitamin E supplements daily. Are you getting enough sleep? Sleep deprivation will hinder your brain's ability to function, you know. And you are looking a bit tired Ruriko-chan,"

Ding, ding, ding! Kyoko hid a smile as she watched the other girl's veins surface to her temples in rage. Ruriko grinded her teeth, jaw tightly clenched. How dare that idiot call her diseased, stupid, and _tired_? Did she really look tired? Because if those dark circles were still there, then that make-up artist was going to get hell.

However, Ruriko finally realized why the name sounded so similar and why this girl was on set. But how did she end up here anyway? She was supposed to have crashed and burned by now. President Takarada caught wind of news like this faster than she could blink. And where did Ren find her?

Instead of asking her, she glared at Kyoko, who continued cleaning her cuts and icing her bruises.

"Hmph," Ruriko "hmph"ed snobbishly and crossed her arms. "Only those with talent can survive in this business. You won't need any interference from me to fail,"

Ignore, ignore, hm…that bruise was looking a bit like a sideburn…

"Hey," Ruriko snapped, peeved when Kyoko began humming. "Are you listening?"

Kyoko merely grinned elfishly at the idol, cupped her mouth, and hollered, "YASHIRO-SAN!"

Immediately, Yashiro Yukihito appeared. He had been in the adjoining trailer when he heard the girl's call. Then he spotted Ruriko-chan.

Yashiro had been informed about Ruriko's tantrum-ing and was told to find an opportunity to get the lead actress back, since they were about to shoot a phone-call scene between Fuko and Choko.

Apparently, Ren had told her off and now Ruriko was playing the absence-makes-the-heart-grow-fonder card. Everybody else on set was aware of this as well, so when a passing stagehand caught sight of Ruriko, he and Yashiro shared a nod.

Tsuruga Ren's manager gave Kyoko a thumbs-up and then held his three fingers up to the stagehand. One by one, he dropped each finger. When Yashiro dropped his index finger, the stagehand bum-rushed a bewildered Ruriko from behind.

"AH! What the F-! PUT ME DOWN! I need an adult! I NEED AN ADULT!"

Yashiro held Ruriko's protesting arms hostage while the stagehand lifted her up by kicking legs. They whistled casually, nodding in a, "Don't worry. I got this, bro," way to other startled members of the set.

Much to Ruriko's dismay, when she arrived to the scene of Fuko's and Choko's phone call, Ren was not searching fervently for her.

No, he was calmly reclining, conversing with Director Shingai, who, with equal ease, drank cool tea and chuckled at something Ren was saying.

Ruriko seethed. _Why weren't they looking for me? Their leading lady was missing - poof, gone! - for at least fifteen minutes. They should have sent a search team out for me! _

Meanwhile, Kyoko finished cleaning up on the bench and waddled over to the make-up team's trailer. She grinned darkly. It was about time she exacted her revenge on Matsunai Ruriko.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: ****The song Kyoko was singing was "I'll Make A Man Out of You" from Mulan. Believe it or not, I do _not _own that song. Also, twenty points if you recognized the song :)**

Firnlambe: Things are getting interesting ;) Thank you and I will try to keep up.

PeanutButterBirthmark: I try, I try. The tuck-and-roll bit made me laugh and I really like writing their love-hate relationship. It makes me happy that you like reading about their love-hate relationship. And you made my _life_ when you quoted that bit with Ren's internal conflict. I was kinda uncertain about putting that in, but now I know I did something right. I adored your review, darling. :D

silver starlight serpant: Yup, I'm pretty sure calling somebody by his or her first name is considered intimate, but I'm still confused about last names. I've read that it can be disrespectful, but I've seen it used respectfully as well. ?

EllaLewis: Ah, it warms my heart that I am now the cause of procrastination. I love you for 'falling to the floor laughing' because it does wonders for my ego and yes, dear Kyoko-chi is as spaztic as ever XD This story will kinda sorta follow the original plot except not really (that makes lots of sense, doesn't it?) I love getting reviews from you :)

kitty.0: Yes, she overreacted again. Thank you for reading and reviewing :)

**Hope you enjoyed reading. **

-**Pony**


	5. Blackmailer

**disclaimer: don't own skip beat!**

"Oh, look. Ruriko-chan is back," Shingai dusted off his pants as he stood.

Ruriko's cheeks were flaming red with the humiliation that came with being man-handled. She stomped over to the director and said demandingly, "Aren't we going to film now?"

"_Well_," Shingai drawled. "That depends on you,"

She growled. "I'm ready,"

Shingai sighed. "Places, people!"

llllllll

"No, no, no! You're a _lady, _so quit crushing the damn phone!"

...

"-no, no, you are _not _a cowboy, so please stop lassoing the telephone wire..."

...

"...what kind of throw was that? You completely missed my - ow, ow! I take that back, I TAKE THAT BACK! Drop your weapon, damn it!"

The young director hopped away and whimpered, "That she-demon took out my shin. It hurts, Ren," He sniffled and looked up at Ren with miserable, watery eyes. "It hurts,"

Yashiro sat Shingai down on a bench and iced the payphone-shaped bruise on his leg.

Yashiro idly wondered, not for the first time that day, if he had suddenly gone from managing the most sought-after man in Japan to playing nurse. Also, was he going to get a raise for this? He hoped so. Some negotiating with Ren over drinks would be in order. Yashiro smiled. He always had the best ideas.

"If the President asked you to tame Ruriko-chan, then he must believe you have the power and will to do so," Ren comforted with a pat to Shingai's shoulder.

Ren looked up to find Ruriko harassing a costume-designer who was trying to fix the idol's wig. He began to turn away when someone caught his eye.

When she first saw her reflection, Kyoko had fainted dead away. The make-up and costume designing team collectively suffered mini-heart-attacks when the odd girl dropped like a fly. When she came to, she couldn't stop fawning over herself, touching her face and kimono until the make-up artist threatened to add a broken hand to commiserate with her ankle if she messed up her costume.

The image of a beautiful Japanese girl with silky dark _hime _hair in a dark red floral kimono was imprinted onto Kyoko's brain. That girl couldn't have been her, could it? That girl that she saw was perfectly polished and mature. The girl Kyoko knew herself to be was plain, frumpy, and childish.

If that girl really was Kyoko...then..._slap my rear and call me Cinderella! _

Kyoko's _getas_ clicked across the sidewalk as she was led away from the make-up and costume trailer and onto the scene.

The crew parted for her like she was Moses; Kyoko duly noted gaping and gasping mouths and appreciative stares her way. She tried playing it cool instead of feeling flustered, raising her chin boldly.

Finally, she caught sight of the director sitting on (her) bench with his face in his hands and Yashiro-san kneeling before him with an ice pack.

Kyoko's breath hitched when she saw Tsuruga Ren standing there, looking sympathetically at the director. Red hair suited him, Kyoko grudgingly thought to herself, though that pretentious, insole-wearing fiend looked good in anything.

Emerald eyes clashed with gold. Her breath cut abruptly in her throat when she looked at his face, which looked deceptively blank to the average person. However, Kyoko saw the shock subtly widen his eyes. His stare became heated as he gave her a slow once-over.

Kyoko wanted to squirm under his intense gaze.

She moved forward hastily and stepped down hard with her injured foot. Pain spiked sharply through her, making her wince and grit her teeth. _Wrong...foot. _Kyoko's weight would have gave out onto her injured ankle if hadn't been holding the stagehand's hand. Still, the flash of pain across her face was noticeable enough for members of the crew to crowd her in concern.

"Kyoko-chan!"

"Are you alright?"

Ruriko scoffed, turning away in disdain. "That hyena is just whoring for attention."

"Mogami-san," Ren's deep, smooth voice sounded over the other swarming voices. Ruriko whipped around to see her crush grab the Love Me-idiot by her arm. She saw red when his hand went to the small of her back to steady her.

Kyoko frowned when a masculine scent clouded her brain on its journey up her suddenly sensitive nose. She stiffened when a strong hand on her back pressed her against a hard chest. _Please be Shingai, please be Yashiro, please be anybody besides-_

"I'm fine, Tsuruga-san," Kyoko knew it was him because _of course _it had to be him. She wheezed and tried to stop enjoying the warmth of his stupid hulking body on hers. Kyoko glanced quickly around, noticing that everyone had returned to their places. Kyoko couldn't stop the betrayed feeling at everyone leaving her to Tsuruga-san's mercy. They trusted him too much. "...please stop touching me,"

He ruefully raised a dark brow. Kyoko immediately wanted to smack him in the face when he smirked patronizingly down at her. "Why? Am I finally charming you?"

"You? Charming?" Kyoko exclaimed, cringing at the break in her voice. "You are charming like Ruriko-chan has a soul. Like the sun is habitable for humans. Like dividing zero. Like mermaids _don't _exist,"

Kyoko growled when he was suddenly wrought with a coughing fit that sounded suspiciously like laughter.

"Do you find something funny?" She hissed, wiggling between his arm and chest.

Tsuruga-san's eyes and smile were warm as he said, "You have a dazzling sense of humor, Mogami-san,"

Dazzling? _You know what's really dazzling? That...dumb smile you have on your dumb face! And what's with that eye-smile? Don't eye-smile at me! _

_That hussy! UGH! Why is he smiling at her like that?! _Ruriko crushed her script in her hands, face stormy.

"You know Ruriko-chan, we don't have an unlimited supply of scripts for you to take your anger out on," Shingai chided and took her script away.

She snapped her attention to him with a surprised gasp. He was so rude! She watched him smooth out the creases before handing the script back to her.

Shingai gave her a half-smile. "If entertaining doesn't work out for you, you could probably teach at a dojo or something. That's some strength you have," He still couldn't walk comfortably thanks to his swollen and bruised shin.

"Teach...at a dojo?" Oh lord, she felt her blood pressure rocket-launching to astronomical levels.

Ruriko's face burned a pretty pink when Shingai's warm fingertips turned her chin towards the object of her affection and the object of her hatred, still _embracing_. "It appears," He murmured. "That she is stealing your co-star,"

"Stealing my co-star my great-grandfather's foot!" Ruriko disagreed hotly.

Shingai watched her thoughtfully. Was he finally getting to her or what? He grinned.

Apparently he _had_ gotten through to Ruriko.

Granted, Shingai would prefer if she could get it down without that many NGs and without his questioning his occupation, though her acting prowess seemed to bloom after having her witness Ren helping Kyoko up in deceptively innocent manner.

Shingai would cling to that desperation and exploit her jealousy, even if it meant putting his leading man and a newbie in awkward situations. Yes, he grinned deviously, Mogami Kyoko would be his handicapped saving grace in a hot pink jumpsuit.

lllllllllllllll

"Thank you for your hard work, everyone. We'll be filming in the next location in Kyoto tomorrow,"

The cast and crew murmured as they dispersed, heading towards designated vehicles that would take the overnight trip to Kyoto. As far as Kyoko was concerned, her job was done like the overcooked yolk of a hard-boiled egg. She had done her Love Me work - she had gotten that rotten demon girl out of her rut and got her to do her job. Kyoko hummed as she hobbled over to where Ruriko and Shingai were.

Whatever whispered conversation exchanged between the two stopped when they saw Kyoko coming. Ruriko's face morphed into that sour expression Kyoko had grown to know and hate. Shingai smiled. "Kyoko-san,"

"My work here is done, Shingai-san," At his sudden change of facial expression, Kyoko reconsidered her words with a wary, "Unless...you have some work left for me?"

"Yes!" Shingai cried, shooting up out of his seat, scaring Kyoko's eyebrows into her hairline. "Yes, you do have more work to do. You must come with us to finish filming. I'll inform Lory, so don't worry about, alright?" He leaned in and whispered quickly, "Just do what you've been doing all day,"

"Doing?" Kyoko frowned and thoughtfully placed her manicured finger to her chin. "I didn't do anything today. I didn't even get to act today,"

"It's fine," He shot a glance over his shoulder at Ruriko, who crossed her arms angrily. "Just keep _talking_ to Ren. Keep close, eh?"

"Wha-!" The protest died on her lips. It was not professional to argue with her employer, no matter how absurd his request was. Keep close to that skirt-chasing, scary-smiling, child-eating beast? Yuck.

"You're being selfish, Shingai-san," Yashiro appeared by Kyoko's side. He pointed at her ankle and said, "Kyoko-chan needs to be taken to the hospital now. You haven't put too much pressure on it today, but you need to get that checked out immediately,"

"That's right!" _Oh, bless you Yashiro-san. _"My ankle!" Kyoko cried happily.

"There's a hospital on our way to our next location," _Oh, damn you Shingai-san. Damn you and your grandmother. _

Yashiro frowned at the makeshift cast and splint on her ankle."Will you be okay in the van overnight? I'm not sure how comfortable it will be,"

It was a tough job, but apparently she had to do it. Kyoko forced a smile. "I'll be fine, Yashiro-san. Thank you so much for your help today and your concern,"

"No problem," He gave her a fond pat on the head.

_"__Ruriko-chan, it will be no trouble to me to replace you this early on in the filming," _

_"__With a rookie? There's no chance. Everything has already been negotiated," _

_"__For the sake of my film – for the sake of art! I will do anything to get the best possible result. Don't think you can rely on contracts," _

_"__..." _

_"__It would be the perfect chance to get close to Tsuruga-san, hm? But if you were replaced..." _

llllllllllll

Kyoto.

The teenager leaned into her palm, eyes blank. Tall, graceful sweeping trees and mountains standing aloofly in the horizon, obscured by frosty clouds. It was too dark to see the passing scenery, but Kyoko knew it was all there. It did not rouse any sentimental feeling in her. Years of watching guests at the _ryokan _fawning over Kyoto's beautyhad made her a touch jaded.

Yashiro-san was asleep in the passenger seat. He had switched with Tsuruga-san an hour ago after taking her to the hospital. Tsuruga-san stayed in the car while she was treated and sent on her way with a bottle of painkillers. Her head occasionally lolled and banged against the window. She blinked rapidly to keep the drowsiness away.

Kyoko noticed his eyes flicker to the rearview mirror where her face was visible when he thought she wasn't looking. He thought he was so slick, casually glancing over his shoulder to eye her ankle. She had her feet propped up across the backseat at Yashiro-san's insistence at making herself comfortable.

He rubbed his shoulder, briefly looking at her again. Kyoko had been rather quiet and less belligerent after the medicine started working. Was that bothering him? She decided to humor him.

"I'm hungry," she said, crossing her arms.

His eyes were focused on the road, streetlights flashing over his face. "Would you like to stop by a convenience store?"

Ah, now he was being nice.

Tired amber eyes found the time. _24:50. _It would be the next day in 10 minutes.

The brightly lit convenience store had blinded her but her eyes soon adjusted. _24:59. _Kyoko considered the onigiri and picked two, not particularly caring about what filling she got. Tsuruga-san stood by her, conflicted between two different fillings. Tuna or pickles, Tsuruga-san? _Just pick one already._

A minute passed.

She glared at him and shoved the tuna onigiri into his hands, taking some pickled fillings in hers. Kyoko limped away and passed her fingers over some chocolate candy. She sourly remembered the last time she was in a convenience store and her arrest shortly after and snatched up some candy.

"Coffee?" Tsuruga-san said gently, touching her elbow to get her attention.

"Instant?" Kyoko wrinkled her nose, distancing herself a bit.

He frowned at her. "You're picky,"

"I'm gourmet," she muttered and picked off some more candy. He was paying.

"Are you buying something for Yashiro-san?" she asked.

He held up two coffee cups and a basket of onigiri.

She gave him a thoughtful look. "For a celebrity, your taste is very plain,"

Tsuruga-san bumped her shoulder with his arm as they walked/limped to the counter, a mean smile on his face. "I'd say the opposite for you,"

Kyoko angrily swiped some more stuff and tossed it into her basket. That instant-coffee drinking scum.

"Ah, thank you!" After Yashiro-san rubbed his sleepy face, he happily accepted their haul. He rustled the plastic bag as he fished out some candy and a bottle of mineral water. "Ren," his eyes glittered. "How did you know this was my favorite brand?"

He glanced at him. "I didn't,"

"No?"

Tsuruga-san nodded over his shoulder to Kyoko.

Yashiro spun around and beamed. "Kyoko-chan! How did you know-"

She looked at him blandly. "I didn't,"

"You must be an esper or something," Yashiro turned back around and opened his water. "Ren never gets what I ask him to get even if I tell him specifically. He's so dumb,"

Kyoko snickered. At Tsuruga-san's dark expression, Yashiro quickly said, "But look at this handsome face. It's okay to be a little stupid if you're good-looking. It would be unfair if you were talented, good-looking, _and _smart,"

"Stop,"

"And you're good at doing your make-up,"

"Yashiro,"

"Remember when Jelly and all the other make-up artists in the agency got food poisoning after a get-together? And you broke out in hives after eating something with strawberries in it and you had a press conference that day? You did such a great job covering up those hives all by yourself!"

"Please stop talking," Tsuruga-san ground his teeth, face flushed.

"You even carry around a compact and some of that face make-up," Yashiro continued, sighing nostalgically. "You keep it in the glove compartment. I guess it makes sense why you're so anal about your skin looking perfect. You are the best actor in Japan. Mr. Number One!"

Kyoko's cheeks puffed dangerously and her eyes teared. Ren glared at her, brows dark and furrowed, through the rearview mirror as she clutched her stomach and her mouth, laying down on her back when she could stay upright no more.

"Kyoko-chan, you should get some sleep while you can," Yashiro said, unfazed by the atmosphere. "We'll get there by six, so you have five hours to rest,"

She managed to agree without bursting out laughing, darting her eyes to Tsuruga-san, who was tapping his fingers on the steering wheel, staring straight ahead with an annoyed look. His expression suddenly smoothed over and he smiled _that _smile. Uh-oh.

"Let's turn on the radio," Tsuruga-san said coolly.

Yashiro looked at him. "You hate turning on the radio. You always say it's noisy,"

"_Oh yeah, baby," _

Kyoko gasped. She clamped her hands over her ears. The corner of his mouth curled up wickedly. "Shotaro! Turn that off!"

"_My love for you is like my favorite pudding," _

"Mercy, Tsuruga-san! I-I won't tell anyone about your makeup! Turn it off!"

Yashiro-san hummed. "I like it,"

Kyoko shot him a horrified look. "How dare you?" She whipped back to Tsuruga-san, who was drumming his fingers to the rhythm. He even dared to bob his head a little.

_"__Chu-Chu pudding is the best pudding, just like my love for you, baby, baby, yeah!" _

"He's endorsed by that brand!" she choked.

Chu-Chu pudding was the most expensive brand in the supermarket and Shotaro insisted that it tasted the best. It had always hurt her frugal heart to buy it with her hard-earned money back when they still lived together. She narrowed her eyes. _Damn Chu-Chu pudding! I hope that shitty Shotaro gets fat. Let's see how many fans you have then to listen to your shitty music! _

"Tsuruga-san," she whined, clawing at the back of his seat. "I won't even exploit your strawberry allergies. Please,"

He raised a brow. "You were thinking of using my strawberry allergy against me? How cruel,"

_"__This is the definition of cruel!"_

He smiled faintly. The teenager frantically pawed through the plastic bag. Her eyes lit up as she landed on a box of strawberry pocky.

Kyoko held it up and smirked.

Tsuruga-san laughed. "Mogami-san, that's not real strawberry. It's just artificial flavoring. It won't bother me, even if you did somehow manage to force me to eat that,"

She sneered and held two sticks up menacingly. "How about if I stick them in your ears?"

He looked at her through the mirror and frowned. "How about I get you fired? Doing that to a senior would be an extremely foolish thing to do,"

_"__Chu-Chu pudding, baby, Chu-Chu pudding yeah, yeah, I love you," _

"Doing this to a junior," Kyoko huffed and chomped on some of the strawberry-flavored sweets. She dusted the crumbs off of her laps and onto his nice seats and floor spitefully. She hissed."Demon. I bet the devil worships you,"

"Shall I buy you his CD, Yashiro-san? We can listen to it in my car," Tsuruga-san said.

Ren watched her squirm through the mirror, eyes squinting with amusement.

_"__Apples grow on trees, lemons grow on trees too, but grapes grow on vines!" _

"What the hell kind of music is this!" she shrieked.

"You sound grumpy," Yashiro-san said. "You really should get some sleep,"

"Make him turn that off, please," Kyoko dug her nails into the shoulder of Yashiro-san's seat.

Tsuruga-san sighed deeply, tilting his head so that his neck made a cracking sound. He rubbed his neck. "It would be nice to have someone massage my shoulders after work. Someone to bring me food and to make cute, nonsensical but pleasant conversation with,"

Kyoko scrunched her eyebrows, puzzled at the abrupt change of subject. "Isn't that what Yashiro-san is for?"

Tsuruga-san sighed again, his head falling dramatically against the plush headrest. He made pitiful sideways-eyes at her. "Alas, Yashiro-san is a middle-aged bachelor,"

Yashiro-san huffed. "So?"

"I'd prefer a pretty girl, but..." He looked at her and sighed heavily.

"I AM pretty! I don't need your approval!"

Tsuruga-san reached over and raised the volume.

_"__IT'S BECAUSE OF THE POLITICAL CLIMATE OF JAPAN!" _

She clenched her teeth and her fists. Her little grudges were getting destroyed! Each word in Shotaro's voice was like a machine gun commanded by a veteran soldier. The blue apparitions didn't stand a damn chance.

"How nice it would be to be cared for by a lady. A lady to bring me watery, lukewarm instant coffee,"

Kyoko stared at him. No. _Nooooooo. _

He cranked up the volume.

Kyoko shrieked and clutched her head.

"A cute girl to take care of me," Tsuruga-san sighed heavily over the sound, leaning his face on his hand as he ignored Kyoko's cries of agony. "I wonder if I could find one...a girl willing to take care of me. A _girl_,"

"Fine!" she cried. "Just turn that off!"

Tsuruga-san blinked. "What's this? Have I found her? A _slave_?"

"Ren," Yashiro-san scolded. "Words are cheap. Here,"

"Ah, thank you, Yashiro-san," Tsuruga-san turned off the radio and pulled over. Kyoko withdrew her hands from her ears and stared at Yashiro-san in shock. That couldn't be...

Tsuruga-san flashed her the pink stamp book.

The blood drained from her face.

He produced a pen and spoke as he wrote, "Slave of Tsuruga Ren for the rest of the _Ring Doh _assignment,"

She gaped between the two of them and the malicious gleams in their eyes.

"You don't want a bad evaluation from me," Tsuruga-san assured her with a smile and closed the book with a snap

Kyoko slowly laid down, her pale face pressed into the leather seat.

_This_ was her senior - her 10-inch-insole-wearing, child-eating, casual-with-women, sadist of a senior who knitted sweaters for everyone in hell during Christmas and had a bland palate and an even worse taste for Shotaro's awful music. Kyoko groaned and loathed herself very much for leaving Kyoto and its majestic scenery for _this. _

* * *

><p><em>getas- <em>clog-like sandals

_ryokan - _traditional inn, the kind that Sho's family run

shooting for 10-15 chapters. hehe mafia, hot springs + ryokans, and stormy weather coming soon!

golden-gengar on tumblr. check me out!


	6. Shop Owner

**Disclaimer: Don't own Skip Beat! **

* * *

><p>Kyoko's eyes burned when she forced them open the next morning. Her eyelids felt so heavy and her bangs were in her eyes. Her back and neck were sore from how she was sleeping. Kyoko sat up and stared blankly at the cast around her ankle. Ah. Right. That.<p>

"Good morning," Yashiro-san chirped from the driver's seat. "We're almost there,"

Tsuruga-san stirred in the passenger's seat. Kyoko noted with a scowl that he had reclined his seat so far back that it almost reached the backseat where her feet were propped up. She cried out when she pulled her knees towards her chest, the pain reacquainting itself with her rudely and painfully.

"Oh, here," Yashiro-san pulled over to quickly hand her a bottle of painkillers. He gave her a sympathetic look. "Eat something and take these. It's going to be a long day,"

Kyoko nodded, still reeling from the pain and gratefully took the bottle. Outside, heavy clouds shrouded the sky. The radio said that there would be heavy rain in the area all day. It felt much later than 6 AM with how dark it was.

Kyoko stuffed some melon bread in her mouth and had some water before taking a painkiller. Glancing at the two in the front, she took some face wipes from her pouch and cleaned her face. She put on some BB cream and lipstick, looking sideways to make sure they weren't watching her. She rubbed her lips together and smoothed out her pink overalls. Kyoko was running her fingers through her short hair when Tsuruga-san spoke.

"If you're done preening, Mogami-san," His voice was low and gravelly from sleep, dark eyes thin. "I want breakfast,"

"I wasn't preening," she grumbled, tucking away her powder compact. She puffed her chest and crossed her arms. "As an actress, I always need to put my best face forward,"

He glared at her. "Food, slave,"

Kyoko shot him a dark look. The treacherous pink stamp book was still on the dashboard in front of him. Those pages recorded her deal with the devil, though it wasn't even a proper deal, since Kyoko gained nothing from it and Tsuruga-san had forced her into it by abusing his authority as her senior. Slave indeed!

She offered him a cream bun.

He gave her a look. "I want melon bread,"

"I ate the last one,"

"Hm,"

The look in his eye told her he was going to push the issue. Kyoko was certain he was only being a brat about the bread because it was the one she had eaten.

"How imprudent of a slave to eat before her master," Tsuruga-san took the cream bun. "Very well. I will not be so generous the next time you make a mistake,"

Kyoko gritted her teeth.

Ren smiled faintly to himself.

It would be a very long day.

llllllll

"Typhoon warning," Shingai repeated the radio's words. He rubbed his eye and sighed."Just my luck,"

Ruriko was sulking in the passenger's seat, scooted so far away from him that she was pressed tightly to the door. She shot him a scathing look when he spoke.

He stared at her. She met his eyes sharply, brows knitted.

For a moment, he forgot why she was there. He thought he was dreaming when Ruriko's manager called, sounding frantic as she explained that the brakes on their car weren't working. Ruriko looked shaken, pale, pretty face drawn and eyes tired. They had gotten into a small accident, in which they'd discovered the faulty brakes. Shingai wasn't sure if she was real or not until she pounded on the car door, demanding he let them in. He unlocked the door, half-asleep. Ruriko sat down and strapped herself in in a huff. Her manager slid into the back, head bowed in shame. Shingai could see the darkness under the older woman's eyes.

He was certain that another all-nighter would finally kill him, so he promised himself a nap the next day. That was the entertainment business; the nature of the beast was sleep-deprived to the point of hallucinations.

Shingai jolted back to attention when he spotted a sleek sports car coming to a stop ahead. There was a small tea shop at the side of the road, so Shingai honked at the car in front of him. He saw movement through the tinted glass, the bright orange head of one Mogami Kyoko.

Ren's car pulled over and Shingai followed suit. He got out and waved. Ren got out and smiled at him.

"Good morning," Ren greeted.

"Not really," Shingai pulled out a cigarette from his jacket's breast pocket and put it in his mouth. "We're going to have some bad weather,"

Ren's smile didn't waver. "It won't interfere with the shooting. It's a serious scene, so cloudy weather makes for good atmosphere,"

"We're going to have to be quick about it then," Shingai muttered around his cigarette, lighting up. "It's supposed to strike tomorrow afternoon, so we have all of today to wrap things up at this location," He clasped his hands in prayer. "Thank god Kyoko-chan is here. We just might be able to get Ruriko-chan to cooperate and get through this,"

"I'm sure Mogami-san will fulfill her duties," Ren's smile seemed a little...scary somehow.

Shingai exhaled a cloud of smoke. Ruriko was walking towards them now, with her manager looking flustered behind her. The older woman was tugging down the back of Ruriko's shirt, which had risen up to expose her tummy. Shingai smirked, causing an angry spark in her eyes. Her skirt had risen up as well, her thigh-high stockings slipping down over slender thighs. Her hair was mussed and her lipstick was smeared. He touched his own mouth and his fingertips came away a shimmery pink.

Ren observed them, his mind flitting to the young girl in his own car. _Jailbait...is there a similar word for it in Japanese? Loli, perhaps? Ruriko is of legal age and so is Kyok- wait. No. Don't go there. _

"We'll stop and meet up with everyone here," Shingai took out his phone and sent a group text out telling them to meet by the teashop. He put his phone away, cigarette between his fingers. "Might as well have breakfast while we wait,"

Yashiro was helping Kyoko out of the car and onto her crutches. Ren sighed loudly so she could hear him. "I suppose I _am_ hungry. There was nothing left to eat this morning."

He could almost hear her teeth grinding. Good.

Kyoko made sure Ruriko went in ahead of her. She wasn't going to have the demon spawn trip her "by accident" and send her and her crutches flying. Kyoko smiled politely as Ruriko's manager thanked her for holding the door for her, though Yashiro-san scolded her for overdoing it while injured.

The lights inside the teashop were dim, the open windows letting in whatever meager light it could. They slid into a dark wooden booth, the black chairs and tables smooth with wear, matching the black hardwood floor.

Tsuruga-san gave her a look of disapproval from across the table as Kyoko dug into her rich cinnamon toast. She chewed aggressively, glaring as he sipped on his coffee. She wouldn't ordinarily indulge in something this heavy and sugary, but he was killing her mood. She stabbed her fork through her fried egg and watched the yolk run onto her plain toast.

Kyoko, Yashiro-san, and Ruriko's manager were sitting in the chairs across from the booth. Tsuruga-san, Ruriko, and Shingai sat in the booth with Ruriko in the middle.

Kyoko stared at the other teenager as Ruriko poked at her peach jam toast. She was surprised that demon girl wasn't trying to flirt with Tsuruga-san given how close they were sitting next to each other.

"Mogami-san,"

Her attention switched to him. Tsuruga-san slid some money towards her. "Get me some cake,"

Her eyebrow hitched up. Ruriko, Shingai, and Ruriko's manager all turned to stare at the interaction. Kyoko slid out of her seat and snatched the money. He watched her with something like glee as she stomped off.

He was such a toad.

"Here," Kyoko muttered, not-so-delicately setting the plate down. She didn't sit down just yet.

Oh no, she had learned.

Not only had he made her place everyone's orders, but he had kept changing his.

"Boiled eggs or fried? Fried."

...

"No, wait, I change my mind. I want them boiled."

...

"Ham or bacon? Neither."

...

"No, get ham. Ham _and_ bacon."

...

"What kind of toast? Cheese toast,"

...

"No, no, I said strawberry jam toast,"

...

"Mogami-san, I did not order strawberry jam, I ordered cheese toast."

...

"Tea or coffee? Coffee or juice? Get all three,"

...

"Excuse me, Mogami-san, but I ordered coffee with fat-free milk, three-fifths of a spoon of sugar, two shots of espresso, no whipped cream, and white mocha syrup."

...

"What's this? Mogami-san, I only ordered water,"

...

"What was that? I asked for coffee,"

_You're asking for a beating. _

Kyoko tapped her fingers on her crossed arm as she stared at him. The sadistic gleam in his eye grew. He slid the cake over to Ruriko. The idol looked at him in surprise as she glanced between the cake and him.

"You look concerned about something," was all the explanation he offered.

Ruriko looked more shocked than anything. "Oh," she said. "Thank you,"

No one wasn't expecting such a dull reaction. Ren took it in stride with a smooth smile. He blinked up at Kyoko.

"Sit." he said.

Yashiro slowed his chewing as he watched his charge. Ren pointedly avoided his shrewd eyes. Kyoko-chan looked confused and a bit angry as she sat (finally!) and sipped her tea.

The director dropped back down next to Ruriko, who stiffened immediately. He stunk of cigarettes. Shingai ran a hand through his hair. "The rest of the crew are coming soon. After that, it's time to work,"

Shingai swiped some whipped cream from the top of Ruriko's cake and made a face. "I hate sweets."

llllll

Ren sunk onto wooden wrap-around porch of the massive traditional home. Kyoko was slinking around behind him, perhaps trying to get past him without him noticing. He smiled brightly.

"Mogami-san,"

He had to admit, she walked very quietly and with unexpected grace even though Kyoko looked more like a high school girl delinquent with her bleached hair and menacing expression.

She flinched and slowly walked towards him.

"Yes, Tsuruga-san?" she bit out, keeping a large amount of distance between them.

"Massage my shoulders," he said.

Ren wasn't in bad condition yet, but he wanted to see her massaging skills anyway.

He wasn't expecting her to look at him as if he had spat on the graves of her ancestors.

"You are asking such a thing from a young, pure girl such as myself? A young girl whose innocence would make a flower blush?" she demanded, enraged.

Ren didn't roll his eyes, but he would have liked to. "Should I minus 100 points?"

"No!"

Though she did not move from her place, amber eyes wide and hands up defensively.

"5,"

Kyoko suddenly felt very nervous.

"4,"

"Tsuruga-san, wait!"

"3,"

"I can bring you a snack instead! Would you like a snack? A towlette? A-"

His teeth sparkled dangerously.

"_2. _Would you like to know what happens when I get to one?"

"But this could cause a scandal," she mumbled, wringing her hands.

He gave her a pointed once-over and declared, "It won't,"

She'd given Shotaro's mother and father shoulder massages after a long day of work in the ryokan, but a male celebrity? Her hands stayed hesitantly raised as she stood behind him.

"1 and a half..."

"F-Fine!" She puffed her cheeks and exhaled loudly as she approached him. Ren shrugged out of his suit. He looked at her over his shoulder. She was still very, very far away.

"Before the arthritis sets in, please," he said wryly.

Kyoko's hands shook. She swallowed thickly. _Just think of him as a customer or something. _

Her hands were small, the bones delicate and protruding through the thin skin on the back of her hands. They produced more heat than he expected. Ren glanced over at her face, confirming what he figured he'd see: averted eyes and Kyoko standing at arm's length.

She was also quite firm. Those small hands packed a lot of strength.

Kyoko kneaded his back with the base of her palms. His shirt wrinkled but she was more occupied by the hard muscle and the knots in his back. She could smell his cologne, the expensive scent of a man who was probably a king in his past life.

"You won't minus 100 points now, right?" she said.

"Mm?"

His voice was low and his tone was distracted. Kyoko peeked at his face, his eyes closed and his face the most relaxed she'd ever seen it. She rolled her palm experimentally. He groaned softly. "There,"

"Tsuruga-san, please don't sound so - so -"

He turned his face to give her a lazy grin. "Sexy?"

"Disgusting," Kyoko corrected and pounded his back with her fist emphatically.

"Ah, there you are," Yashiro's voice and footsteps carried towards the pair. Kyoko immediately retracted her arms. Ren almost pouted.

"Break's going to be over soon. I asked around for any convenience stores nearby. What do you want?"

"Onigiri is fine," Ren said, rolling his shoulders.

"Is it far?" Kyoko asked, looking worriedly up at the gray sky. "You might get caught in the rain,"

"It's a bit of a walk," Yashiro said. "But it's not supposed to rain yet. I can make it if I power-walk!"

"If you're worried, go with him," Ren said. "You are my slave, after all,"

Her cheeks bloomed red as she clenched her fists."I will! Let's go, Yashiro-san,"

"Will you be alright?" he asked, looking down at her ankle.

Kyoko nodded. "The painkillers kicked in so I'm feeling fine,"

"Alright then. Godspeed!"

Ren watched the energetic duo walk off the set. As bratty as she was, she got along surprisingly well with others. Ren rolled his shoulders again, noting the lack of stiffness. He flipped open the stamp book and absently scribbled, "Full of surprises. 50 points."

llllll

"Is that it?" Kyoko said, looking dubiously at the _hovel_ at the end of the dirt road. Her good foot's sneaker was caked in dirt and she sweating from the humidity and the grueling walk.

Yashiro delicately patted his own sweaty brow with a handkerchief. "Konon? That says Konon right? It's so grimy I can't tell,"

She slid the wooden door open, wincing at the creaking. "Hello? Is anyone there? We wanted to buy some food,"

Yashiro busied himself with petting the sleeping puppy by the supposed convenience store's fence. Kyoko surveyed the dusty little place. It actually was a store if the shelves stacked with packaged food items was any indication. She picked up a bag of chips. "This will have to do then,"

"Yes it will," Yashiro cooed at the puppy. "Isn't that right, little one?"

An old woman popped out behind the counter. "250 yen, please,"

They screamed.

The old woman blinked at them, puzzled. "The price isn't so unreasonable that you should overreact like that,"

Yashiro and Kyoko were still crouching, frozen and wide-eyed in fear.

Kyoko bowed at a ninety degree angle. "S-Sorry! W-W-We were just looking for s-snacks! PLEASE FORGIVE OUR INTRUSION!"

"Whatever. Just pay before you go," The old woman waved and sat behind the counter again, though her lack of height made it seem like the shop was empty.

Yashiro set the yawning puppy back down slowly. "Uh, I guess we'll take a couple of chips and some bottles of water. Come on, Kyoko-chan,"

"Th-That startled me," she said, clutching her chest.

He counted some change and laid it down on the counter. "She's just a tiny grandma, not a ghost,"

Thunder rumbled in the distance.

They shared glances. "Uh-oh."

Kyoko and Yashiro grabbed their purchases and ducked out of the shop with matching farewells of, "Goodbye, tiny grandma!"

The moment they hit the pavement, it started to pour.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Currently busy with my sasuhina fic and have been v neglectful of my baby January.**

** I had this written for a while now but I had wanted to add more to this chapter. I figured I might as well publish this instead of holding it hostage for a couple more words. **

**To my readers: I am very sorry *bows* for keeping you waiting on this...it sure has been a while! But this is probably the easiest and most fun fic of mine to write. It's just that I have sucky time management skills and other stuff to do. **

**Thank you for sticking it out with me and thank you for reading! **

**Pony out. **


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